Is tranexamic acid effective and safe for patients undergoing revision total hip and knee arthroplasty: a meta-analysisIs

Abstract

Background: The use of tranexamic acid (TXA) during primary total joint arthroplasty （pTJA） is well documented. However, whether TXA is safe for patients undergoing revision total joint arthroplasty (rTJA) remains to be resolved. Methods: This meta-analysis included 12 studies that involved 2195 cases. The primary outcomes were indicators of TXA effectiveness during perioperative perid, including blood loss, haemoglobin (Hb) level changes, allogeneic blood transfusion (ABT) rate, and number of red blood cell (RBC) units transfused per patient. The secondary outcomes included thromboembolic complications, non-thromboembolic complications, and length of hospital stay. Results: TXA administration was associated with statistically significant decreases in the primary outcomes, including ABT rate (odds ratio [OR], 0.24; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.14–0.41; P < 0.00001), change in Hb level (mean difference [MD], −0.84; 95% CI, −1.28 to −0.41; P=0.002), and number of RBC units transfused per patient (MD, −0.49; 95% CI, −0.61 to −0.38; P < 0.00001) in the patients undergoing rTJA. Secondary outcome assessments showed no statistically significant differences in venous thromboembolism (OR, 0.99; 95% CI, 0.31–3.14; P=0.98) and non-thromboembolic complications (OR, 0.54; 95% CI, 0.18–1.68; P=0.29) between the patients who received and those who did not receive TXA in the revision total knee arthroplasty subgroup, while a significant decrease in length of hospital stay was found in those who received TXA (MD, −2.89; 95% CI, −4.85 to −0.93; P=0.004). Conclusion: In this meta-analysis, we found that the use of TXA acid can effectively reduce the number of blood transfusions in patients undergoing TJA without increasing the complication rate.